Kindergarten Celebration: Activities for an Ice Cream Day!

All kids love Ice cream and any day is great time to have a party with kindergarteners and slip in some learning as well. This is a great time for all and all it takes is just a little creativity and imagination. Try these easy ideas to help make your party number one with your students.

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There is so much you can do with your students when you hold an ice cream day in Kindergarten. Keeping the day focused on learning while enjoying some of these sweet treats results in the best day you have ever had with your students. This whole day revolves around food in the form of sweets.

Taking that into account, it only makes sense to spread the ice cream consumption over a few hours. You don't want the children bouncing off of the walls at 9:00 am!

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Items You Will Need

There are a few items you will need for the food segment of the party such as the following;

Ice cream maker

Rock salt

Ice cream scoop

Bowls and spoons

Aprons (optional)

Craft Items:

Construction paper

Scissors

Glue

Glitter

Printouts from the free pattern link on this page

Crayons (optional)

Items for the games:

Bandanas (for blind-folding)

Small paper cups

Plastic spoons

Oversized map

Small bean bags

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The Food Segment

This is a favorite among the kids because they love to get involved in making the food that they eat. This is where the kids get to see how ice cream is made. By bringing an ice cream maker into the classroom, you just opened up their minds to a whole new concept: Ice Cream does not just come from the store.

Their imaginations soar when they look down inside the equipment and see the ice cream being made. Just the idea of salt being involved in making it is usually a big wow moment for the kids.

Allow them to take turns adding a spoonful of rock salt to the machine. This puts them in direct contact with the process, and they will remember this process for a long time.

Start making the ice cream at the beginning of the day, as it will take a while to achieve the desired goal of making enough ice cream for everyone to get some to eat.

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The Game Segment

There are several games you can play with the students that will set their minds in motion while teaching them fun things about ice cream.

Game #1:

"What does the North Pole smell like?"

This game is all about smell and imagination. Here's how you play it.

First, divide the class into two teams.

Next, blindfold each student with a bandana as they stand in a line.

Place small bowls of several different flavors of ice cream that have a distinct odor on a long table.

Tell the students what flavors are on the table but do not tell them in what order. (You can leave this part out if you want the game to be more interesting, but keep in mind, they are young children and may need the extra help.)

Allow the students to smell the ice cream, one at a time, and yell out what flavor they think it is.

Once they reach the end of the line, let them take of their bandana and go sit down.

Don't allow them to help each other.

Whichever team gets the most flavors right wins extra play time.

Game #2:

"What do snowballs taste like?"

This game is about taste. Here is how to play it:

Divide the class into two teams, or keep the same teams that participated in game one.

Blindfold each student.

Place a different set of ice cream flavors on the table in small bowls. Do not reveal the flavors this time.

Allow the students to taste the ice cream.

Tally the results and when everyone has had a taste, total how many students identified the flavor correctly.

The team with the most correct flavors wins.

Give them a theme related sticker for winning the contest.

Game #3:

"Where in the world did ice cream come from?"

This game is all about learning history. Here is how you play it.

Point to China on a big oversized map and ask the students to identify the location. (The letters need to be big so the students can see it well.)

You can either divide the class in teams or have them play individually.

Allow them to guess as a group if they are on teams or separately.

After a few minutes of guesses, you reveal the location. Say something like "The answer is China." Explain to them about the history of ice cream as it relates to China.

Game #4:

"Pass the ice cream."

This is an active game that kids love. The play goes like this:

Divide the class into two teams again.

Tell them to form two single lines.

Give every student a small bean bag.

Next, give the first person in the line a large plastic bowl. (Large enough for some of the bean bags, but not all, to fit without it becoming too full.)

Next, instruct the second student in line to say, "Pass the ice cream". Each student says the same phrase while putting their bean bag in the bowl and passing it down the line.

The team who can keep all of their ice cream in the bowl and bring it to the teacher wins.

*Tip: The kids can strategize to win. For instance, they can place their strongest players towards the end of the line if they want to.

You can provide various non-food prizes for the winners, or just allow them to feel great that they won. Accumulating a collection of stickers by the end of the day will make most kindergarteners smile.

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The Craft Segment

This craft segment is simple yet so fun to do; it will inspire their imaginations again. Download and print out the free pattern. Next, cut out the pattern pieces and have them ready for your students. Here's what to do:

Let them trace around these pieces onto construction paper.

Invite them to cut out their colored pieces.

Instruct them to glue them to a separate piece of construction paper.

Allow the kids to decorate their Ice cream cones however they want to.

They can frame the picture with separate pieces of construction paper if they choose.